If anything they open the ball without hesitation. No dragging, pointless intro, no building towards a climax, no frills, The Way of Time is straight to the point, high quality symphonic metal from the first second onwards. This song ticks all the expected and known boxes linked to symphonic metal and then some. The beautifully orchestrated atmospheric, emotional intermezzo is a sweet bonus and the same can be said from the dueling vocalists that augment each other. Although both Marika’s and Alberto’s vocals are powerful and lively enough to lead a song on their own, the collaboration and interaction between the two lifts the overall quality significantly. Successor Edge of the Dream continues along the same lines even up to the atmospheric intermezzo, albeit with a slightly less heavy undertone.

Next up is Ancient Spirit and although in essence not overly different from the previous two songs its feel is completely different, proving Eternal Silence has more than one vein to tap from. The keys are more prominent and the sound is less dark. Heart of Lead, that starts as a power ballad and takes well over a minute to ignite, follows up on this after which the true power ballad Lonely marks the halfway point. The second half starts with Glide in the Air, a song that, with its intro that would fit any Nintendo game, throws me off track for the first thirty seconds. It then blooms into a full-blown metal song with some nice guitar work near the end. Then, with Rain and My Soul Sad Until Death, the band returns to their initial heavier, more dark style delivering two more symphonic songs that border power metal.

After all this there’s the soothing acoustic, orchestra-supported ballad Firefly that all or not intentionally serves as a moment of rest and reflection before closer and heavyweight Red Death Masquerade explodes in full force. This is undoubtedly the heaviest song on the album. The heavy, tight riffs accompanied by equally heavy drum and bass lines and a ditto orchestrated section pack a serious punch and the vocalists have no problem delivering a little extra weight to add to its overall heaviness. What a way to end a release!

So all things considered Timegate Anathema is an album that has been carefully composed and forged into an organic, highly entertaining and masterfully executed whole. Clearly Eternal Silence is well aware of what they are doing and what they are good at. They do not hesitate to deploy different styles, different velocities and different heaviness throughout the album and they seem to be comfortable with playing either of them. A superb release in my opinion and, to come back to the earlier claim, certainly for fans of Epica, Within Temptation, Sonata Arctica, Lacuna Coil, Evanescence. Having said that, despite the clearly audible influences of said bands, this one has an identity and personality of its own and is in no way a weak deduction or shameless copy of either of them. Highly recommended!

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After some soundscapes that create the impression of an army sailing in from the sea, opener Across the Waves fades in to develop into a great over nine minutes spanning song that is mainly based on a strong Viking metal backbone. The somewhat inciting rhythm definitely convinces, which also goes for Hæðenwulf’s harsh vocals. The added intermission with preceding bass line are the icing on the cake. My first encounter with Oscenrad turns out to be somewhat of a treat, hopefully the rest of the album will turn out to be just as nice. And sure enough, successor Beneath the Ancient Sky does not disappoint with its compelling, striking rhythm halfway through the song. Title song Beyond the Fells, the third consecutive composition that spans over nine minutes, sadly offers less excitement compared to its two predecessors as this is pretty much a run-of-the-mill Viking metal song. Still a good song, don’t get me wrong, but nothing too special. Next up is an odd duck in the pond, an acoustic instrumental piece called Seeress that has a nice rhythm and a somewhat soothing atmosphere. In no way in line with the previous tracks, but, also since I’m a big fan of variety, a welcome intermezzo nonetheless. One that is followed by Runes Ye Shall Find, a song in which Oscenrad picks up where he had left off and that has its highlight in the form of a nice double bass rhythm as the end of the song draws near. Then there’s only one more song left, the album’s conclusion, the epic 12-minute pinnacle Of wolf and Blood that once more displays the impressive skills and huge potential Oscenrad possesses. It’s a song with many, sometimes only subtly differing faces that packs all Oscenrad has to offer into one track.

Admittedly this is not a perfect album and in all honesty Oscenrad is neither particularly innovative nor shockingly groundbreaking, but both are irrelevant in my opinion. Why? Well, for starters I have yet to encounter perfection which I know will never happen anyway and secondly, why change a winning team? Doing what you excel in may be a safe path, but when executed with care it usually brings nothing but good, as is proven here. With Beyond the Fells Oscenrad delivers a more than solid and certainly above average Viking, pardon Anglo-Saxon metal album that will surely stand out in a sea of similar releases, especially considering it is a debut album we’re talking about here. The fact the entire production, composing, playing, recording, mixing and so on is the work of one man, Hæðenwulf, makes this an even more impressive release, although that is and should be far subordinate to the tunes of course. But even if that is left out of the equation, Beyond the Fells is an album that is more than worthy of your time and money, no matter if you are a fan of the genre or not. The solid compositions are well thought-out and executed with skill, maintaining a high standard where it comes to quality at all times. Do not hesitate to grab a copy when you have the chance, I’m sure you’ll find it to your liking, much as I did.

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Sanctus Spiritus opens with an organ-accompanied choir chant that wouldn’t be out of place in any Catholic mass before exploding into a full-blown symphonic power metal song that musically reminds me of bands like Epica and Powerwolf, with its massive, bombastic arrangements. The vocals that join in the fun after a few moments however, put me on a completely different track. His style and sound is almost identical to that of Sabaton’s lead roar Joakim Brodén, complete with the sometimes extremely rolling ‘r’. So Epica and Powerwolf meet Sabaton here, especially when the musical style of the latter becomes clearly audible when The Sword of Sorrow, the next song on the album, takes off. The deep, resonating roar from the opener has made way for a more shallow voice that still has quite some power to it, making the similarities with Mr. Brodén even more striking. And this mystery vocalist has at least one more trick up his sleeve, one he uses in song number three, Come With Us. This time he strikes a more raspy, throaty tone that feel to, at times, touch the outer borders of his vocal range and thus his capabilities, like in The Doom. Not a really big deal, as it still sounds good, but worth mentioning nevertheless. Throughout the entire album he alternates between these three styles, merging them into a hybrid whole.

As a rule any vocalist, regardless his or her quality and capability, is nothing without a group of equally qualified musicians. Obviously this rule applies to Apostolica as well. With their music having clear commonalities with a few of the leviathans of the power metal genre, it’s required they have an excellent line-up and I must say, they certainly meet the requirement. Guitars, bass, drums, they all are of an equally high level, effortlessly following the at times intricate path of the various songs making this a top-shelf power metal release. Haeretica Ecclesia offers the complete package with ingredients taken from the entire range that forms power metal. The most striking are the uproaring tunes that awaken your fighting spirit known from bands like, here we go again, Sabaton. They are abundantly present and form the core of the music, like in The Sword of Sorrow and Thanatos. However, there are quite a few references to the darker, more keyboard lead, symphonic orchestral power metal, which are smartly and subtly woven into the compositions. Examples of this can be found in Pollution Is My Name, Redemption and, much more subtle, Thanatos. To complete the package the guys of Apostolica have added a few very nice musical details, which increase the quality and value of the songs even more, like the incredible haunting intro of The Doom, the guitar work in Famine and the sweet collaboration between rhythm section and guitar in the solo in Come With Us to name a few.

So all in all it’s safe to say Apostolica’s Haeretica Ecclesia has turned out to be a qualitatively well above average power metal album. Is it particularly original or innovative? No, it isn’t. Is that a problem? No, it isn’t either. Look, I am all for innovative, one of a kind type of music, but that does not mean every single release has to be exactly that. Sometimes, often even, it’s much better to stick to what you are good at, simply because what you do is of great quality. This clearly is the case with this release. I have no idea who Apostolica are, but it’s a definite fact they full well know what they are doing and they are pretty good at it. This release brings you fifty minutes of unadulterated power metal in its purest form, tapping from the entire spectrum of the genre. Fans of the genre simply cannot afford missing out on this one, everyone else can consider this as a textbook example of how power metal should be composed and executed. Regardless who the four musicians actually are, in the end it’s the tunes that determine the judgment and success of an album. And that right there isn’t an issue here. At all. Get your hands on this one!

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The album kicks off in a true symphonic metal fashion with Heavens in War that has a keyboard riff riddled intro. From the moment the song ignites, when the vocals enter the equation, it sounds a little out of sync to me. It feels as if the rather irregular rhythm opposes the vocal lines, creating confusion, making it hard to stay focused. At least for me. It gets better as the song progresses, but the two never seem to catch up to each other. The next song is, where it comes to that, much better. The four minute long Fallen Angels has an amount of hooks and rhythm and speed changes that wouldn’t be out of place in any prog track, something that, in retrospect, is recurring throughout the album. A good display of what Mike is capable of composition wise, which apparently is considerable. The band, next to Mike and Bob consisting of Spectre on drums and Shadow on bass sounds as if they can easily keep up with the composing whims and fancies as they get plenty of opportunities to showcase their capabilities. Drums, guitars, bass, they all prove to have plenty of potential, which a little polishing could help come into full bloom. Keymaster Mike of course shows his best side as well with his sometimes wildly flailing keyboard riffs. Try Let Your Hatred Be on for size.

Apart from the early incongruity in the opening track, things are pretty solid vocal-wise as well. Not a small feat considering the six different vocalists, both male and female, the use of an entire choir and, to top it off, the duels between vocalists like in The Invocation. There’s quite a wide range of different voices, adding to the already intricate musical landscape that enfolds as The Book of Chaos progresses. Some of the vocals vaguely remind me of Bruce Dickinson, while the title song bares a great operatic duo, The Invocation houses a grunt-ish vocalist and The First Exorcism hosts a full blown black metal entity. Variety galore, just like in the tunes. As chaotic as that may sound and in theory is, the band manages to channel it all into manageable chunks that, combined, form an ever-changing musical landscape that never bores and, for by far the biggest part, keeps you highly entertained.

In conclusion I must say that, after a shaky start, The Book of Chaos turned out to be a nice, adventurous journey through the land of Mike’s musical preferences. With varyingly strong influences from power, symphonic, prog and a few other types of metal I’m comfortable saying that this very much resembles a metal opera, partly due to the use of a choir and the complicated, intricately drawn-out compositions. The wide range of vocal lines, which might not all be to your liking, add to this impression. Admittedly it’s not all perfectly fluent, if anything this diamond in the rough shows there is room for some growth, but the basics are most certainly there and above average, especially considering the fact this is actually the maiden release of this revived band. So despite a few minor points of criticism, quite normal when dealing with a pretty much new band, overall this is a release that more than deserves your time. And a band to keep your eye on for sure. A more than promising start in my opinion!

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Opener Massive Drain immediately showcases what Inner Stream stands for with its melancholic feeling intro, followed by some textbook example power metal elements as the guitars, drums and bass start backing up the vocals. Inés has a very expressive voice which packs quite a punch if she so desires, but can be equally emotional or fierce at will, depending on what the tunes demand. Up until today I have never heard of her, which actually surprises me, because man, the lady can sing! However, saying the vocals are the only noteworthy aspect in Inner Stream’s songs would be unfair towards the other elements of their music, it’s safe to say they deliver a complete package of high quality in every aspect. The elements from electronic music, courtesy of Guillermo by the way, at times predominating while at other times subtly placed, are a great feature and certainly an addition to the overall atmosphere of the tunes.

In fact the songs have a wide array of surprising, beautiful details that sadly feel a bit underexposed due to the lack of time. Though Stain the Sea offers eleven songs, it only spans a little over 39 minutes, which on the one hand leaves me yearning for more, but at the same time gives me the feeling that I have not experienced everything as it was intended. That can of course be solved by simply playing this again, but that is not the same. Anyway, those details add a lot of depth to the songs and keep things exciting, which is not easy with this type of music, as it has been overly explored by many other bands, many of which are not capable of transcending mediocrity. Not Inner Stream though. A few, by yours truly highly appreciated examples are the old school heavy metal solo in the title track which is as amazing as it is surprising, the poppy parts in The Bridge that vaguely reminisce of T.A.T.U. in their heyday and the lovely keys in Fair War and Real. But honestly, this summary does not even scratch the surface, there is so much more to be found. I can only urge you to go and find it out for yourself, you won’t be disappointed.

If I had to describe my feeling towards Inner Stream’s debut release in one word it would probably be ‘amazed’. With Stain the Sea the band has managed to merge power with both emotion and fragility, creating an atmospheric piece that both mesmerizes and mystifies at times. If anything this is a very strong debut, both within the genre as in the heavier type of music in general. The capabilities of all band members are undisputed, Inner Stream looks like they have a great future ahead of them. They tick all the boxes and then some, provided you are not looking for the rawer, more extreme types of metal. Back-boned by strong compositions, skilled execution and a great production, Stain the Sea will bring you many pleasant hours as this is one you can keep on playing time and time again. The only point of criticism is, like stated earlier, the duration of the songs which gives me the feeling the abundance of intricate and refined details is not done full justice. If the songs would have been a bit more drawn out, so that the sometimes beautiful details have more time to sink in, this would certainly have been a serious contestant for the top spot in my year list. Nevertheless, success guaranteed, this one has still reached my list. Highly recommended, you simply cannot afford to miss out on this!

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Opener, title song and first single Crimson Gaze start in relative peace with a lingering rhythm lead by harsh vocals and underlined by a sweet bass line before opening up. Once fully unleashed the song consists of recurring pieces of melodic metal that vary in speed, enriched with a nice genre-defying solo. Add to that the alternation between the rougher pieces and the more soothing, acoustic sounding parts and this can surely be considered an interesting start of my journey into the unknown that CroworD was for me. It’s clear this is not your run of the mill raging death metal, the emphasis is emphatically on the carefully composed melodicism. Most of those aspects return in the next song, Isle of the Dead. In fact, the ingredients are basically the same, but the execution and their place in the composition vary, resulting in an interesting and different angle of view on the same concept with every single track. This in turn ensures a familiar, recognizable vibe and atmosphere in every song without repetition in any way. Death and the Maiden continues down the same path, but with closer Secession there’s a distinct difference as the speed goes up and with it the alternating, more relaxed pieces mostly disappear, although the closing tunes strongly contradict that.

All in all this is certainly a highly interesting piece of work that shows great promise for the upcoming new full-length album and sets the expectations equally high. Though called death metal, the roots certainly are there, the music CroworD serves us is very accessible and has plenty of hooks that will both attract and entertain a wide crowd of metal fans from almost every genre. For sure one you should try on for size. I’ll certainly check out their previous releases as well, as they have definitely piqued my interest.

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Since we already know the guys felt the need to translate the urgency and seriousness of the issues they take on in their lyrics into the songs, the only question that needs to be answered is how that sounds. Well, let’s start by saying their message is received loud and clear as they go in for the kill within seconds with album opener. Meaningfully titled Black Dogs, it is a song that is, quite topical, about the effects of isolation and mental health augmented by the way we treat the world around us. Based on personal experience this song paints a grim picture that comes with a musical frame that can only be described as fitting. Combining heaviness and aggressiveness the no-nonsense metalcore these guys smack you in the face with tortures your eardrums in a very pleasant way. The relentless drum lines, the raging guitars, the buzzing bass lines and the aggressively attacking vocals, if this doesn’t get you all riled up, nothing will. And if that is the case, you might as well stop listening to this altogether, because what you hear in the first song is what you get throughout the entire release, starting with the soothingly starting but soon exploding The Rising Tide, that gives us a clear indication about what awaits us in the near future if we keep doing what we’re doing.

A World On Fire is capable of taking its unsuspecting listener by surprise with its aggressive, crushing musical approach that is only surpassed by the grim message it spreads. Even the guests, Cabal’s deathcore roar Andreas Bjulver in Walls of Jericho and Red Method’s Jeremy Gomez in Your Apocalypse blend seamlessly in into this well-organized wall of frustration and anger screaming sound. So consider yourself warned, but don’t let that warning scare you away from this album in any way. Despite my description the music is surprisingly accessible and, even more so, a real treat. You do not simply listen to this album, you experience it and it is well worth your time and attention. The guys from The Five Hundred have clearly found a way to channel their anger, frustration and powerlessness about the path we humans have chosen into their tunes resulting in a very strong soundtrack that aggressively underlines the severity and seriousness of the crisis and subsequent demise we allow Mother Earth to cruise towards. A very powerful statement that cannot be ignored even if you wanted to. Point taken. Now it’s your turn to value both the album and the statement. Highly recommended!

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Title song and opener The Sand Within is essentially a two-minute introduction that start rather peaceful but builds towards what this album really is about. Partly, because despite this build up successor Life Ascending turns things up another notch right from the start, with a sweet old school thrash-based riff and ditto structure. Sound Of Memories leaves little to the imagination where it comes to their musical intentions, winning me over in less than a minute here. The double bass, the humming bass loops, the angry hoarse yet strongly varied vocals, the tight riffing, this composition ticks all the right boxes. Surely a brilliant start and one that will stick to your head for a long time to come. State of Grace, the next song of this album, has a similar vibe, but with Soul Asylum there’s a distinct change in the tunes. The speed goes down a few notches, but the music still breathes the old school vibe of the previous songs. The rest of the album unravels pretty much along these lines with very appealing songs that predominantly balance on the line between thrash and heavy metal with the emphasis on either of the two varying within every song. In itself more than enough reason to justify a high rating for this album, but to top it off the album is riddled with more or less striking details that lift The Sand Within to an even higher level. The awesome solo in Fate and Doom, the at times surprisingly mild The Shivering Whisper, the drum lines in Fate and Doom and the Slayer-like intro of Black Virgin are only a few examples of this.

Basically Sound Of Memories display a lot of different approaches that eventually lead to the same result: Great, strongly old school influenced thrashy death metal with a modern touch and high attention to detail. The tunes are gripping and certainly an invite to a good neck muscle workout, with Life Ascending as the pinnacle, without downplaying the rest of the songs. Though quite intricate in their variety and versatility, all songs are both easily accessible and highly entertaining, making this an appealing release to a wide range of metal fans. Why we got the chance to review this one only just now is beyond me, but there is no doubt the guys have produced an album that they can only be proud of and, at least in my opinion, certainly deserves worldwide attention. I wouldn’t at all be surprised if this turns out to be an instant classic around the globe. Anyway, better late than never, this one is definitely recommended by yours truly.

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After listening to this EP quite a few times, I was still not completely sure whether Cemetery Echo should be called a metal band or a rock band, but that their preferred pastime is to play gothic music was undisputedly obvious early on. Equally obvious is that their music leans heavily on the musical style of the eighties gothic pop/rock scene where bands like The Cure and The Cult were some of the top players. However, despite the clear similarities Cemetery Echo did not simply copy and paste, but instead added their own twist to it to distinguish their style from that of the band that dominated the aforementioned scene. Although objectively the music isn’t all that innovative, bearing many easily recognizable hints to the past, it has a pleasant vibe to it that ensures you will want to keep close to its development. The twist, however, that really sets them apart from their almost ancient predecessors and source of inspiration are the vocals.

Switching smoothly from some sort of evil growling via an ominous whisper to the characteristic eighties gothic troubled, dark yet clean vocals and back, the atmosphere constantly changes. Although this is a recurring feature it comes out the best in the title song. These varying vocals add extra depth to the music, making this an interesting and promising release. It’s probably quite obvious the vocals draw the most attention, but that does not mean the musical performance is below average or not worth discussing. On the contrary, this too certainly meets the required quality needed to have a chance in the overcrowded world of heavy music. Not only do they know how to play, the production on this augments that even more as each instrument is clearly mixed into the whole. Great job. A band I will certainly keep an eye out for. And my final verdict: It’s rock, not metal.

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Narci, after an EP and another full-length, is the third significant release of this supposedly progressive doom metal band. Supposedly, because, up to a certain pint, I do recognize this label in their first two releases, be it only partial, but if that label applies just as well with Narci remains to be seen. In all honesty, the self-designated synth-doom label seems much more accurate. Either way, Narci is about a mental disease that is spread through digital transmission and that preludes the end of the world. It opens with a most peculiar composition that sounds organized in its very disorganization. It’s called Spectral Arms and it’s a ten-minute long tribute, or introduction if you like, to what awaits still. Not that that was a surprise in the first place given the description of the genre Circle of Sighs has chosen to play. That doesn’t exactly leave much to the imagination in that department. Anyway, back to the tunes themselves. Although seemingly random and absolutely chaotic, there is certainly some logic to be found, provided you are open to it. Despite about a dozen different styles that jump from a sole piano to Black Sabbath-ish riffs, equally many varieties in speed, heaviness and whatever else you can think of it still sounds like an actual song. Successor We Need Legends certainly is not inferior to Spectral Arms where it comes to peculiarity, with a major role for the synth-part of CoS’ music. If anything the first two songs clearly show Circle of Sighs treads many genre borders within metal music, merging a torrent of influences into extremely complicated compositions that require your full and undivided attention to avoid losing track altogether.

In the next three songs, disregarding the 49-second intermezzo Segue 04, the band seems to hold back on the peculiarity, as the songs are less peppered with unexpected, seemingly random soundscapes, tempo changes and intermezzos. That does not mean that these songs are any less intricate, enthralling or adventurous, they simply are more written with the traditional song structure in mind. Both harsh and clean vocals, more or less lasting rhythms, recurring pieces and even a hint of a guitar solo in Narci, it almost sounds normal. Luckily, or not, depending on your point of view, none of the songs are completely devoid of peculiarities, of which the spacy soundscapes in A Crystal Crown of Cosmic Pain, that has a rather distinct early Black Sabbath vibe, and the jazzy outro in title song Narci are examples. And while in Heaven in Flames the synth returns, the band has one last surprise up their sleeve in the form of album closer The Man Who Stole the Wind that, arguably, can easily compete with any other ballad by any other metal band, proving Circle of Sighs is not only adept at composing synth-doom but also at more mainstream, or regular if you will, metal.

Now, if you’re looking to relax with a good glass of Scotch and a cigar while playing some chamber music, you really don’t want to put this into your sound system. If you, on the other hand, are looking for organized disorganized tunes that will keep you awake and focused, this might just be what you’re looking for. Although the first two songs can prove a challenge for many listeners due to their complex structure that has no obvious logic, it pays off to give them a chance or at least sit them out, as the rest of the album is certainly easier to take in. Having said this, either way you slice it, Circle of Sighs’ music is an acquired taste and will never reach the large mainstream audience. Nevertheless why not step out of your comfort zone and put this one, there’s a good chance you might be positively surprised. Not for the faint of heart, but certainly a rewarding listen.

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